This invention relates generally to methods and apparatus for decorating sheet material such as, for example, a manufactured cigar wrapper, and, more particularly, to a method and apparatus for embossing a predetermined pattern such as, for example, a vein pattern, on such sheet material.
The present invention is particularly useful in embossing a vein pattern, similar to the vein pattern of a naturally appearing tobacco leaf, on a manufactured cigar wrapper. Cigars generally are wrapped with either a natural tobacco leaf or a manufactured wrapper which includes a mixture of natural tobacco, adhesives and cellulosic fibers.
The advantage of using a manufactured cigar wrapper rather than a natural tobacco leaf resides in its considerably lower cost and the increased ability to manipulate both taste and aroma by the addition of appropriate additives. The natural tobacco leaf has, historically, been the symbol of a quality cigar and, accordingly, it has been a goal of cigar manufacturers to simulate the appearance of a natural tobacco leaf wrappers on manufactured wrappers.
To this end, cigar wrapper manufacturers have, on numerous occasions, attempted to print or draw a natural vein pattern on a sheet of manufactured cigar wrapper. For example, British Pat. No. 14,494, which issued to William Watson on Nov. 3, 1884, teaches the embossing, stamping or printing of natural tobacco leaf designs on manufactured tobacco paper. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 2,316,785, which issued to Frederick C. Gladeck on Apr. 20, 1943, discloses the embossing of a sheet of manufactured tobacco wrapper with a pattern which simulates leaf tobacco. See also, in this regard, U.S. Pat. No. 3,145,717 which issued to F. H. Osborne, et al. on Aug. 25, 1964 and which discloses the calendering or embossing of a sheet of manufactured cigar wrapper with a leaf design having stems and veins.
A particular problem experienced by cigar wrapper manufacturers in embossing or engraving such a veined pattern on the manufactured cigar wrapper is that during subsequent manufacturing operations and during use, as the sheet is stretched, the raised vein pattern is stretched flat and is thus removed. This is particularly true when the humidity of the wrapper rises. Prior art attempts at embossing or printing vein patterns on manufactured cigar wrappers have not, heretofore, been successful because the generally uniform color of the manufactured wrappers did not appear natural when compared to the randomly colored natural tobacco leaf.
Against the foregoing background, it is a primary objective of the present invention to provide methods of and apparatus for decorating sheet material such as, for example, manufactured cigar wrappers.
It is another object of the present invention to provide methods of and apparatus for embossing a predetermined pattern on sheet material such as, for example, a manufactured cigar wrapper, which will not be removed during subsequent processing operations and during use.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a method of and apparatus for imparting a base color and a shade color pattern on the embossed sheet material such as, for example, a manufactured cigar wrapper.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a method of and apparatus for imparting a base color and shade pattern on the embossed sheet material such as, for example, a manufactured cigar wrapper, and then laminating thereto, in a symbiotic relationship, a second sheet having similar or dissimilar properties to that of the embossed and colored sheet.
It is yet still a further object of the present invention to provide an efficient, economical and commercially accepted method of and apparatus for decorating cigar wrapper material.